I was born in 1968 in New Jersey, the youngest of five children.  My father started out as a carpenter and ended up as Director of Construction for Stern's department stores.  My mother stayed at home until I entered high school.  An amateur artist and classical pianist, she also was (and is) an avid reader. She taught me to read when I was four or five, and we went to the local library every week.  The first book I can remember buying for myself was 'The Black Stallion,' which I got from a book fair at school when I was six.  My first stories, from the age of seven, were horse stories.

When I was eight, my older brother Dan read 'The Hobbit' and 'The Lord of the Rings' and I'm sure that my introduction to Middle Earth at such a young age is one of the reasons why I write science fiction now. 

....and I'll finish rambling on about myself...later....:-)